Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) warned cryptocurrency investors and companies about North Korean attackers. North Korea is an extremely privileged country for some talented individuals. For example, by committing cyber theft under state assurance and donating part of the loot to support the nuclear program, you can access many privileges.
FBI Cryptocurrency Warning
The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) issued a warning that employees in web3 companies are being targeted. If you follow the news, we share warnings every few months about North Korean attackers targeting investors with social engineering techniques. The hacking of the Ronin bridge was an incident that should be etched in everyone’s memory.
Lazarus brought “job offers” to team members to steal the private keys they needed, and the systems of victims trying to open the PDF file containing details like salary were compromised. Can opening a PDF infect with a virus? Yes, even those with basic attack knowledge can make any virus file appear as a PDF at first glance and merge it with a real PDF. Thus, when you click, both the virus and the PDF work, and you do not notice the virus.
Social Engineering Attacks
Computer engineers know chips, software engineers know code functions by heart. Social engineers’ job is to deceive. You don’t need to think of a person as a machine; these are people with basic psychology knowledge, who can correctly read the emotional changes of their targets depending on the situation, and are aware of how they can manipulate their victims. Kevin Mitnick was the Apple of this field and died around this time last year. Studying his life and books will broaden your horizons.
Returning to the FBI warning, it is mentioned that targets are approached very selectively. Especially in the last few months, attempts have been made against employees in ETF companies.
“North Korean malicious cyber actors have conducted research on various targets related to cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the past few months. This research included pre-operational preparations indicating that North Korean actors might engage in malicious cyber activities against companies associated with cryptocurrency ETFs or other cryptocurrency-related financial products.”
If you work at an exchange or have a significant amount of crypto investment and someone comes to you with an incredible job offer, you might prefer not to believe it. The person in front of you could be one of the North Korean attackers.
